Chapter 7

I couldn't even begin to describe how I felt.

I couldn't believe he had the nerve to say that to me.

"I didn't want to marry you even before I knew you were cheating," I said, staring at him in disbelief. "What makes you think I would choose to marry you now?"

"But you’re pregnant!" he blurted out.

Yes, I was pregnant.

But who decided that being pregnant meant I had to compromise my life for some hollow version of "love" and "marriage"?

Precisely because I was pregnant, there was no way in hell I was marrying him.

How could I let my child grow up in a home built on a foundation of lies and betrayal?

I myself was the product of a failed marriage—the unfortunate mistake of two people who resented each other.

My mother had resented me because her pregnancy with me ruined her dream of becoming a professional dancer and cost her a chance to marry into wealth.

And my father, constantly suspicious of my mother's fidelity, dragged me to get three DNA tests before finally accepting the truth in black and white.

My existence was never wanted. No matter how hard I tried to be perfect, I was always just a burden that chained them together.

The moment I turned eighteen, they decided they had fulfilled their legal duty. One afternoon, they both vanished, leaving behind nothing but a rented apartment with six months of unpaid rent.

I had dragged myself out of the mud to get to where I was. I had sworn to myself that I would never get married. To me, marriage was nothing but a trap.

But Ethan came from a perfect, loving family. His parents met in college and had a beautiful, textbook marriage.

So, when he pursued me, he constantly talked about wanting that kind of life.

I knew this would eventually become a dealbreaker between us. Before I even accepted him, I made my stance clear: I would never get married.

He was incredibly confused back then. He couldn't comprehend why someone would be so opposed to marriage.

"What if you fall deeply in love with someone?" he had asked.

"Still no. Marriage is not a prerequisite for love."

After thinking it over for a long time, he told me, "Even so, I still want to be with you. But I’ll keep hoping that one day, I can change your mind."

"Then prepare to be disappointed forever," I warned him.

"Deal."